Others hunting Irish

Notre Dame still has the top class of recruits, and could even add more quality players.

Notre Dame still has the top class of recruits, and could even add more quality players.

December 21, 2007|BOB WIENEKE Tribune Staff Writer

In terms of recruiting news, fans of Notre Dame football might be a little bored this year. And if you're an Irish fan, that's not a bad thing. Already, ND has secured 22 verbal commitments, a group that ranks as the nation's best by CSTV analyst Tom Lemming, Rivals.com and Scout.com. "It's a great class," Lemming said. "So far, so good." The majority of the class was assembled prior to the start of the season, leaving a good amount of time to work on current juniors, identify late-blooming seniors and keep the committed players committed. "They've just got to hang on to the guys they've got and get a couple more," Lemming said, "and it will be tough for anyone to beat them." The following is a list of players still being pursued by Notre Dame, according to Lemming, along with his thoughts on each: Gerrell Robinson, WR, Chandler, Ariz.: "Notre Dame has a very good shot at him and he may announce during the Jan. 5 U.S. Army All-American Bowl." Kenny Page, OL, Columbia, S.C.: "It looks like he's still deciding between Notre Dame, Clemson and maybe South Carolina. Here's the thing with Page: The longer it takes for him to decide, the more likely it is that he'll go somewhere other than Notre Dame, probably closer to home. "His visit to Notre Dame came during the season and the track record is that the longer a player takes, the more likely he is to go to a school where you've had a recent visit. It's fresher in the player's mind." Deion Walker, WR, Christchurch, Va.: "It looks like a tug-of-war between Penn State and Notre Dame, but (PSU assistant) Larry Johnson is the coach recruiting him and he's tough to beat. He's their best recruiter." Kapron Lewis-Moore, DE, Weatherford, Texas: "Is set to visit Notre Dame Jan. 18. He's committed to Texas A&M, and Mike Sherman, the new coach, will probably make him a priority to get him back in the fold before his ND visit." Nick Perry, DE, Detroit: "He had 36 sacks this season and is starting to get a lot of attention. ND defensive coordinator Corwin Brown recently stopped by to see him." Datone Jones, DE, Compton, Calif.: "He's a guy that Notre Dame is looking at, but I see him going back to UCLA, where he originally committed." Ryan Williams, RB, Manassas, Va.: "He's still out there, but his visit to ND was so long ago that I imagine he'll end up at Virginia Tech." Cyrus Gray, RB, DeSoto, Texas: "Florida is telling him that he can come in and start right away because they don't have a lot of running backs. But the Gators remain in the running with Darrell Scott of Ventura, Calif. Scott is the No. 1 running back in the country and Florida is one of his main schools. But Notre Dame is very much in the picture with Cyrus." Lemming believes that Miami, Ohio State, Georgia and perhaps even Michigan could challenge the Irish for the mythical recruiting championship, and never count out Florida and USC, two schools that traditionally load up on talented players late in the cycle. But right now, the Irish are the hunted "The fact is," Lemming said, "they do have the best class right now." The legend continues The Contra Costa Times reported last week that Nate Montana, son of former Irish great Joe Montana, will walk on at ND next season. Montana told the paper he will be an invited walk-on and that he hopes to earn a scholarship by 2009. Montana was a backup this season at California powerhouse De La Salle High.